ascidian

[ uh-sid-ee-uhn ]

noun
  1. any solitary or colonial tunicate of the class Ascidiacea, exhibiting in the larval stage the vertebrate characteristics of a notocord and hollow nerve cord.

adjective
  1. belonging or pertaining to the class Ascidiacea.

Origin of ascidian

1
1855–60; <New Latin Ascidi(um) a tunicate genus (see ascidium) + -an

Words Nearby ascidian

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How to use ascidian in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for ascidian

ascidian

/ (əˈsɪdɪən) /


noun
  1. any minute marine invertebrate animal of the class Ascidiacea, such as the sea squirt, the adults of which are degenerate and sedentary: subphylum Tunicata (tunicates)

  2. ascidian tadpole the free-swimming larva of an ascidian, having a tadpole-like tail containing the notochord and nerve cord

adjective
  1. of, relating to, or belonging to the Ascidiacea

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